I walked into the girls’ restroom right after literature class. My brain started doing that annoying thing where it won’t shut up.
Dominic still hadn’t reached out to Ash.
Two whole weeks and not even a "hey."
My best friend’s basically running on heartbreak and caffeine, pretending he’s fine when he’s clearly not.
And now, ?
I’m lowkey panicking about going to Ren’s place later. Because talent show practice, yes...but also Ren. The sa Ren who used his shirt to clean sothing off my lips last ti.
God, why do I attract chaos?
I sighed and checked my reflection in the mirror. "You’re fine," I muttered to myself. "You’re hot, talented, and maybe slightly unhinged, but fine."
Then I spotted one rogue eyebrow hair sticking out like it paid rent. "Oh, absolutely not," I whispered, grabbing my tweezers. "Not today, Satan."
Halfway through fixing my face, my phone buzzed.
A text from Ian.
Hey babe, let know when you get to Ren’s. I might not be available to pick you up. I’ve got this thing I need to sort out.
I stared at it.
"’Thing I need to sort out’? What are you, Batman?" I muttered.
Still, the ssage made sothing twist in my stomach. He says he’s fine with working with Ren, but that text felt... off.
Whatever. He trusts . I trust him.
Mostly. Kind of. Okay, fifty-fifty on a good day.
Ian being busy wasn’t new, but sothing about his tone felt... off.
Whatever. I had other things to worry about.
I sighed again, putting my phone away and walking into one of the stalls.
My waist had been killing all morning. Probably just cramps warming up for their main show.
"Please don’t let my period co today," I whispered, pressing my hands together, praying to God. "I have too much drama already."
I was mid-pee when I heard it...a soft sob from outside the stall.
At first, I was like, okay, emotional breakdowns in bathrooms? Totally valid. Been there.
I tried to mind my business. But then the crying got louder, and another voice joined in.
"You should stop crying about it," a girl said, softly. "It’s ti to think about what you’re going to do?"
The crying one sniffled.
"I don’t know. He denied it. Said he’s not the fucking father! How am I supposed to tell my parents I’m pregnant?"
My hand froze on the toilet paper dispenser.
Pregnant?!!!!
I covered my mouth, trying not to gasp out loud.
No way.
Soone was actually pregnant, and from the sound of it, the guy ditched her, and also denied the pregnancy!!
No way. No freaking way.
I an, holy drama bomb.
This is why we learn sex ed, people.
Say no to unprotected sex! Or better...say yes to abstinence, like .
(Okay, that sounded judgntal, but seriously, this is not the kind of life side quest I want.)
The crying continued.
I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop, but...what was I supposed to do, not listen?! They were talking like they wanted to hear.
anwhile, my cramps started throwing hands. Great timing.
I needed to get out of there. Like now.
So I flushed the toilet, loud enough to announce my existence, and stepped out of the stall.
Both girls turned instantly.
That’s when I saw them...the two girls by the sink.
And my jaw dropped.
Crystal.
They both looked shocked when they saw .
Like I’d just risen from the toilet like so kind of nosy bathroom ghost.
The Crystal....head of the cheerleading team, queen of fake smiles and an complints.
Sa girl who once told I "wasn’t hot enough to be a cheerleader," and that I’d need to "lose like ten pounds" to even try out.
Right now? She had streaks of black mascara running down her cheeks, puffy eyes, red blotchy nose....basically looking like a tragic raccoon.
So yeah, not so "perfect" now, huh?
I rolled my eyes and walked to the sink, pretending not to notice the drama while I washed my hands.
She’s pregnant.
That’s so wild-ass news.
"Right. So... you guys should probably keep that conversation between you and Jesus, yeah?"
Still nothing.
"Cool," I said, drying my hands like this was totally normal. "Also, no judgnt, okay? Just, uh, maybe get tested. And hydrated. And maybe don’t trust dudes nad Kyle. Or Brandon. Or any guy who says ’trust .’"
More silence.
Before I could even grab a paper towel, she turned to , startled, like she was still processing how I heard everything.
"You..." Crystal’s voice shook. "You heard that?"
"Yeah," I said honestly. "Kinda hard not to. These walls echo."
"Are you... are you gonna tell anyone what you heard?" Crystal’s voice shook.
I blinked. "Nope. Not my business." I shrugged.
"Right." She sniffled, clearly trying to hold herself together.
Her friend disappeared into one of the stalls, leaving just the two of us.
I looked back at Crystal. "By the way, you’ve got sothing all over your face."
She frowned. "What?"
"Your whole face, babe. Mascara. Snot."
She gave a watery laugh that imdiately turned into another sob.
"Oh my God, not only do I have an unwanted pregnancy, I also look hideous."
Before I could move back, she lunged forward and wrapped her arms around my neck, crying into my white shirt.
I froze.
Great.
Just great.
Now I had raccoon tears and snot all over my favorite shirt.
"Hey.. hey!" I tried to pull back, but she held on tighter. "Okay, okay, it’s fine. You’re getting snot all over my shoulder, but sure, cry it out. Breathe." I said awkwardly, patting her back like she was a puppy.
She mumbled into my shirt, "He doesn’t want it. Said he’s not the father."
"That’s ssed up."
She sniffed hard, saring even more makeup on my shoulder.
"He said he’ll et after school... give cash to throw the trash away."
I pulled back. "Excuse ?! The trash? Did he seriously say that? What the actual!"
"What sort of monster says that?" I hissed, feeling the anger boiling up. "That’s a human life, not a...trash bag!"
Her lips trembled. "He said it like it was nothing."
"Who?" I demanded. "Who said that? What kind of dumbass thinks that’s okay?!"
She hesitated, like saying the na might make it more real.
Looked up at with wet lashes and said it so quietly I almost didn’t catch it.
"Ian Han."
My whole body went still.
My breath caught.
For a second, everything in the room went quiet....the hum of the lights, the dripping faucet, even my heartbeat.
"Ian..." I repeated, like maybe I’d misheard her.
"Ian Han?"
My phone buzzed again in my pocket.
Another ssage from Ian.
Love you. Take care of yourself, okay?
I stared at the screen, then at Crystal, still crying, still broken.
My heartbeat started racing.
My stomach twisted.
Because Ian Han wasn’t just so guy.
He was my guy.
And I’d just found out what kind of guy he really was.
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